Hearts of Heroes
by Awesomoisawesome
Summary: After Sasuke's betrayal, Jiraiya notices strange events occurring on the other side of the world. Orochimaru might be to blame, so it's up to Team Jiraiya to investigate. AvatarxNaruto crossover. Rewritten, NaruxHinaxToph and SasuxSakuxAzula
1. Declaration of Heroes

Hearts of Heroes

by Awesomoisawesome

Awesomoisawesome doesn't own Naruto or Avatar the last Airbender

Summary: Two heroes, one chosen to save the world and one who was already sacrificed to save it, join together to rid the world of the Fire Nation and the evils of the Snake Sannin. Will the Avatar and the keeper of the Nine Tails be able to save the ones they love or will their efforts be in vain. 

Warning: If you haven't seen Avatar the Last Airbender, try to watch an episode on You don't have to, but it makes the story much better. All you need is the Crossroads episode to make it make sense. This story starts some time during the filler arc for Naruto and some time after Crossroads for Avatar.

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Chapter 1: Declaration of Heroes

It was a sunny morning in Konoha, a young, blond, energetic ninja was starting to get up and begin his day. The sky couldn't of been more beautiful or the air couldn't of been fresher ether, it seemed like the perfect way to start a perfect day. Nothing in the world made him feel better than great weather. Good weather made it easier to look for a missing-nin...

Sasuke had left a few weeks ago, and Naruto still wasn't ready to give up on him. The S Class mission he just recently had with Sakura and Jiraiya wasn't a success but it did tell them that he was still alive, which only fueled the crazy idea of bring him back home.

His training with Jiraiya had also helped build hope for the future. Never in his life had he felt this powerful and this was only the tip of the iceberg, in three years he had no idea what possibilities where waiting for him.

He had almost forgotten that Jiraiya was coming home today from his spying mission of Orochimaru's hideout, hopefully he had information about Sasuke's whereabouts. It could be the single most important information that Naruto could receive.

In a matter of moments, Naruto had finished his usually eight bowls of ramen for breakfast and was out the door to the Hokage's tower. He knew Jiraiya was always early when it came to missions, something Kakashi could learn a little about.

Princess Azula never liked to report to her father, it was uncomfortable and awkward but mostly it reminded her that she wasn't at the top yet. There wasn't anything more she hated than being someone's lackey, even if it was her father and now emperor of the world.

She entered the chamber where her father spent most of his time, it felt like a oven in there but she loved it. Nothing could equal fire's power, and there was nothing in the world better than power or at least she thought so.

Her father was on his throne, staring at her with his golden eyes that seemed like they could pierce your very soul. However something was off, his eyes usually were filled with a passionate flame that couldn't be put out, but at that moment his eyes looked so cold that it sent a chill down her spine. In her entire life, she was never afraid of her father, but today she could hardly move. What was going on...

"Hello daughter, did the mission go well?" that voice, it was almost disturbingly cold, even if it was the same voice he always used. She had no idea what was going on in her head, maybe it had something to due with the fact that they finally had Ba Sing Se in the palm of their hands.

"Yes, we have taken Ba Sing Se and delivered a near fatal blow to the Avatar. It seems like we have won the war." Strangely this news didn't effect her father as much as she figured it would. Had he already hear of her amazing tale?

"Good... Azula I will give you Ba Sing Se... if you finish this last mission for me..." Azula was shocked, she figured she would already be in control of Ba Sing Se since she did conquer it with less than three people. But she knew not to argue, her father wasn't known for compromising, just asked her brother.

"Whatever you wish, my lord." He seemed to think about something for only a brief moment, something he didn't usually do. Then he smiled at her, something he never did. And said...

"I want you to bring me the Avatar, Alive." This shocked Azula since he would always say he wanted the Avatar to die and finally get out of his hair once and for all. It just didn't make any sense.

"But father... I think I might of already killed him." Honestly she figure she had, no one could stand a direct lightning blast in the back.

"Don't worry I believe he still lives and if he isn't... well... I guess I will just have to kill you." The way he said it, sent chills through out her body. Sure her father liked to kill, but he would never be that calm about ending her life, the last heir to the throne. It was almost sadistic, that grin he used wasn't her father's. What had become of him...

"Y..Y..ess Father!" She didn't want to spend another minute in front of him. If it wasn't for her dignity, she would of ran right out of that room. But she calmly got up and walked out of the room, hoping that her father wouldn't sense the fear she had.

Once she left, Ozai let out a sadistic chuckle "Ku ku ku pathetic little child..." his once golden eyes shifted to a serpent shape. Two shadows were behind him, one with glowing red eyes.

"Was that really necessary, Orochimaru?" Sasuke had felt the killer intent that Orochimaru had used against the poor girl. It was completely unnecessary to use something like that against a civilian. He didn't know why he was complaining though, better her than him, but it was just the way the girl look after receiving it. That fear reminded him of Itachi...

"Don't question Orochimaru-sama, he can do what he wants, when he wants, and how he wants to. Don't you ever forget that!" No one questioned Orochimaru, Kabuto was stunned by how calm he took the treasonous comment. Normally Orochimaru would of ripped their head right off, without a second thought. This was more proof that Sasuke had special treatment, something that angered Kabuto greatly.

"It's fine, besides putting a little fear into your troops reminds them who they follow..." It was painfully obvious that he enjoyed the way that young woman looked at him. Nothing amused him more than fear, especially when it came from someone who was on your side.

This answer infuriated Sasuke, "Why the hell are we here anyways, instead of making me stronger? How in God's name will I get strong enough to beat Itachi, if I just stand around and do nothing?" Kabuto was shocked, Sasuke had the audacity to question Orochimaru-sama's decision and not get his head ripped off. But Orochimaru just chuckled some more.

"Don't get impatient, my Sasuke-kun. The reason why we are here is to make you unstoppable" This got Sasuke attention, "I plan on infusing you with the Avatar's power and giving you the ability to control the elements at will. Just imagine the possibilities..." Kabuto was surprised by this news, he thought they had come over just to conquer this hell hole as a way to test Sasuke's strength and Orochimaru's new body. Sasuke was pleasantly surprised by this news, Itachi couldn't fight off the power of mother earth easily, could he...

Tsunade's office was jammed packed full of ninjas, it was only four ninjas but her office was slightly smaller than one would think. Jiraiya had heard that Orochimaru was spotted traveling to the other side of the world for something, taking only Sasuke and Kabuto with him.

Whatever he was planning couldn't be good for Konoha. The only thing to do was to sent a team to find out what's going on and stop him before too many lives ended. Because of the lack of shinobi at her finger tips, she choose a team with more personality than actual shinobi skills. Hinata, Sakura, and Shikamaru would join Jiraiya, and travel around the world to stop the sick Snake Sannin. Jiraiya would be more than enough hopefully to stop the crazed sannin.

"Are you guys ready, this will count as an S-ranked mission. It should be good practice for you Sakura. I believe your ready to save a few lives." said Tsunade with a sad smile on her face, Orochimaru often left a high body count in his wake.

"Yes, Tsunade-sensei!" Sakura was excited about the chance to save Sasuke and see the world. She had been cooped up in that village for far too long and now it was her chance to see some action.

"And for the rest of you... well your all I got." This information kind of brought down Hinata's mood and Shikamaru didn't really care. They still thought this mission needed to be taken seriously though.

"Jiraiya, you better bring them back alive. If that bastard touches a hair on any of them, I'll make sure you won't be able to enjoy being a pervert again." Jiraiya nearly shivered at the thought.

He knew to keep them safe at all cost, no matter what. But he was slightly disappointed that Naruto wouldn't be with them. He needed to train the boy some more and he had promised to show Naruto something cool when he got back from the spy mission.

"YES ma'am, let's go brats" Jiraiya started to walk out of the office, followed by his team, when a bright orange blur slammed into him.

"WHAT THE HELL!" screamed Tsunade as Jiraiya fell down hard. The blur turned out to be everyone's favorite loudmouth. Hinata was at a lost for words at the sight of her crush, Sakura was steaming over how rude Naruto could be, and Shikamaru didn't really care too much.

"Tsunade-baa-chan! Where's ero-sennin?" Naruto was standing on the poor frog hermit, and because he was as thick as a brick, he didn't notice the wiggling floor beneath him.

"Why are you here, you little bastard!" She was just about to have Jiraiya out of her hair again.

"I wanted to know what Ero-sennin found out about Sasuke..." Naruto seemed to be effected deeply from that one name. He still felt guilty for not bring the traitor home and breaking his promise to Sakura.

"Naruto... I..." Tsunade couldn't think of anything to say, she wanted to comfort him but knew Naruto didn't want to be coddled in front of his friends. Watching him like that broke her heart.

"Get the hell off of me!" Jiraiya was getting tired of this. He also knew that he should tell Naruto before he left. It would only be right. But first Naruto needed to get off of him, so he could breath. Once he got up he smack Naruto's head in, after a few minutes of this, Naruto was on the ground and while Jiraiya had his foot on Naruto's head.

"So what did you find out..." The foot was still there, but that didn't matter that much.

"Not much, Orochimaru has left the Sound village for a while. Sasuke and Kabuto are the only ones who are with him. I believe they went to the Earth Kingdom on the other side of the world though. Probably to take it over and enslave everyone there. They stand no chance against Orochimaru... We have to go and stop them." Jiraiya knew telling Naruto this meant that Naruto would want to come with them.

"I'm coming with you guys and I don't care what you say." Naruto had the glimmer of determination in his eyes that said that he would follow they even if they said no.

"Wouldn't have it any other way, brat." Jiraiya grinned and Naruto smiled back. Time to save the world...

"Wait just one damn minute. I didn't say you could leave, you little twirp!" Tsunade was steamed that Jiraiya would allow Naruto to join the mission without her say so.

"Come on Tsu-chan, he's going no matter what you say. Even if you chain him up, he would find a way to break free and go. At least this way I can keep an eye on him." Jiraiya honestly wanted Naruto to come with them. There isn't anyone he would rather have at his side, he knew he could count on Naruto.

"Fine, but you will and do you hear me Naruto, you will listen to Jiraiya and Shikamaru. And if you, so help me God, get into something you can't handle, I plan to bring back your soul from the dead and torture you for as long as I live." This plan worried Tsunade greatly, but she knew Naruto would be in good hands. Nothing else to do except get really drunk and let the pain disappear. Sure not the healthiest way, but it works.

Naruto didn't scream loudly or jump around, he just smiled sadly. They all knew from that moment on that this mission was going to be more important than the usual. It was time to get Sasuke back.

Next Chapter: Aang and his group find a small town to rest, Azula returns to Ba Sing Se, and Team Jiraiya makes their way to the other side of the world.


	2. Other Side of The World

Hearts of Heroes

by Awesomoisawesome

Awesomoisawesome does not own Naruto or Avatar the Last Airbender

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Chapter 2: Other Side of The World

"Hurry up Appa, Aang's in trouble." cried Katara as she attempted to mend the massive hole in his back. Azula's attack did a number to him and it wasn't looking so great for team BoomerAang.

Luckily the group had made a clean getaway from Ba Sing Se, even though they were pretty badly beaten, both physically and emotionally. Now they needed a place to rest, recover and plan to get Ba Sing Se back. A small little earth town would work nicely, since flying around wasn't helping the young Avatar's state.

The stars were bright, as they flew swiftly through the air. One would think a flying bison wouldn't be able to reach the speeds that they were going, but during an emergency anything was possible.

"Please Aang, please don't die." tears were forming in Katara's eyes as she looked down at the poor dying boy. It was almost as if they were watching a family member die, they cared little about their own bruises and scratches. All that mattered was Aang's heath. He hardly looked like he was breathing. They didn't want to lose a member of their unique family, even if he was a pansy.

Everyone was quiet, listening to Aang's dying breath, hoping that he would get up and everything would be okay. Nothing at that moment mattered, not the fire nation or Zuko or even Azula, all that matter was getting the Avatar to a safe place. Suddenly Sokka saw a small amount of smoke coming from the horizon.

"Guys look over there!" screamed Sokka as he pointed towards it. Everyone, except Toph, turned their heads to see. The smoke seem to come from a small little earth village. One of their prayers had been answered.

"What I don't see what the big deal is." pouted Toph. Being blind sure did have some disadvantages. One of those was that she didn't really understand what seeing smoke meant to them. _'Insensitive jerks...'_ thought Toph as she hoped someone would explain.

"The big deal is there's a town down there!" cried Katara with tears in her eyes. Now they had a better chance to save Aang and even get some rest.

"Appa, yip yip!" said Sokka, as the giant flying bison started to land.

_'Damn my father to hell!'_ thought Azula angrily as she walk through the grand halls of Ba Sing Se's royal palace.

She disliked the idea of looking for the Avatar or at least didn't like the possibility of finding his rotten corpse in the middle of nowhere and having to report back to her father so he could kill her. That very threat he had made about ending her life, shook her to the very core. It didn't seem possible or probable, why would he kill her, he was her father after all.

_'He was probably just kidding around... yeah that's probably it.'_ but when had he ever joke before. The lord of the Fire nation wasn't known for his comedic side.

A quick, "Azula!" interrupted her thoughts. She knew that irritating voice anywhere and wasn't in the mood to put up with it. So she just walk right pass her annoying hyperactive friend and her depressing friend.

It was pretty plain to see that the young princess was not in a pleasant mood, but of course Ty Lee needed to learn the hard way and kept pressing it. "Azula! How was your trip?" Azula just flicked a bit of lightning at the poor girl, catching her shirt on fire.

"I'm guessing she's not in the mood to talk..." whispered Ty Lee to Mai, as she patted herself to put out the fire. "What gave it away?" whispered Mai back, her voice pure sarcasm.

Azula just continued straight towards the throne room, her favorite place in the all of the crazy world. There she seemed all mighty, like a goddess sent to the earth to purge it of weakness. At the moment though, her little trip had greatly diminish her ego and she needed the little boost of superiority that the throne offered her.

She spent the next few hours on the throne of the Earth Kingdom, thinking up solutions to the problems she was facing at the moment. Her father, for some strange reason, didn't send any troops to help strengthen her hold on the city, all she had at the moment was the Dai Lee, and his new mission for her would make it impossible to keep her iron grip on Ba Sing Se.

As she tried to figure her next move, Zuko, Ty Lee, and Mai barged in with a new face. The stranger was a young lad, about two years younger than herself, in strange black clothes. There was something off about the boy though, his eyes were the color of blood with swirling black commas that seemed like they could pierce right through her soul. Another feature about the boy that bothered her too, was the fact that he was almost unbearably beautiful. She felt her cheeks heat up slightly.

"Azula, father sent us some help..." Zuko said, he didn't feel quite right with everything. Maybe it was the fact that he had betrayed the only person in the world that he considered family or since spending time with Azula was always really uncomfortable it could all be in his head. It could also be the fact that his father sent someone to watch over them, something he would never do usually because he trusted Azula's skills. But one thing he did know was something was off about this situation.

The boy gracefully walked pass Zuko and bowed to her. "My name is Sasuke and I am here to help you with your mission, my princess."

Naruto and Jiraiya where getting on everyone's nerves. Their constant bickering would get to anyone eventually though. Even Hinata was starting to get annoyed at them, something that seemed impossible.

"Hey Ero-sennin, are we there yet?" asked Naruto for the thousandth time.

"Stop calling me Ero-sennin! You little brat!" screamed Jiraiya for the thousandth time.

"Stop calling me a brat! You pervert!" screamed Naruto back for the thousandth time.

"Maybe I would if you would show me some respect!" shouted Jiraiya.

"Maybe if you weren't so perverted I would show you some respect!" countered Naruto.

"SHUT UP BOTH OF YOU! It's been nearly a week of this constantly. If you guys don't stop soon, I'll kill both of you and bury you were no one will find you." exclaimed Sakura. She just couldn't take any more.

"Hey everyone." Hinata nearly whispered, she wasn't good with huge groups or if these huge groups involved Naruto. She wished that she was a little more confidant. "Everyone I see something." It was slightly louder, not much, but it was a start. No one heard her through Sakura's yelling and Naruto and Jiraiya's arguing.

"Everyone, I have something important say." Again she tried but they didn't even try to pay attention. Finally Shikamaru had enough of this and used his shadow to paralyze everyone, that got everyone's attention.

"There you go Hinata." He was getting tried of everything.

"Thank you Shikamaru-kun, I see a small village ahead of us." It wasn't a large village, only about a tenth of Konoha.

"Mmm, I think we will stop there tonight and tomorrow we'll head towards Ba Sing Se." Jiraiya said.

Toph hated being reliable and why did anyone think letting the blind child go and get supplies was a good idea. That probably wasn't the only reason why she was so angry though, truthfully she had never felt so worried before. Aang wasn't getting better and they had been there for nearly a week.

She also hated the fact that she was the only one that didn't get to constantly stay with Aang. Just because she acted tough didn't mean she was invincible, she had feelings and emotions just as tender as theirs were. It was painful to leave him, watch him get closer to death every minute and not be able to be with him as he takes his last breaths.

But she knew that they relied on her strength to get them through this, if she fell apart who would be there to help them. These thoughts had been plaguing her as she walked through the town center. It wasn't very big and the small market there didn't have much but it was enough to get by for a little while.

The real problem was that they had no idea what to do next. Aang, the last hope for the world, was dying and once he was gone there would be nothing on earth that can stop the fire nation from destroying everything they loved.

It just wasn't Toph's day though as she stepped in a puddle. She cursed and took a step back. The day just got worse as she rammed into someone behind her, it felt like slamming against a steel wall with strange clothes on it though.

"Hey watch it, brat." said the man as he walked off. But unluckily for him, Toph was in a bad mood and he just had to push her past her limits.

"WATCH THIS YOU ASS!" screamed Toph as she stomped the ground and launched a torrent of sharp rocks at him.

"ERO-SENNIN!" cried Naruto as he watch a bunch of pointy stones pierce his perverted sensei.

Everyone in the group looked towards the man in question and saw him puff into smoke with stones flying out of it. Toph looked surprised for a second, _'He must be a sorcerer_,_ but what kind of illusion was that?'_

She knew there was something wrong with that guy but how did he create a near perfect clone of himself. The vibrations that she felt coming for a nearby tree matched the clone's, so Toph decided that the tree needed to be removed.

Jiraiya had a bad feeling about this, he knew of earth benders and they always seemed peaceful. But this little girl seemed troubled by something, something wasn't right with this situation. He had little time to think as the tree he was in suddenly exploded from the ground and was sent into the air.

Next chapter: Toph vs Team Jiraiya...

Naruto and Team Jiraiya begin a battle with Toph the master earthbender. Azula makes her move on Sasuke.


	3. Toph vs Team Jiraiya

Hearts of Heroes

by Awesomoisawesome

Awesomoisawesome does not own Naruto or Avatar the Last Airbender

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Chapter 3: Toph VS Team Jiraiya 

Jiraiya landed roughly on the ground between Naruto and Hinata, they all wondered if he was okay. He got up and dusted himself off with a smirk, Toph looked amazed. How could he have gotten up from that, this guy was no amateur that's for sure.

"Didn't anyone teach you that it isn't nice to blow people up?" mocked Jiraiya, the team looked horrified at the situation. They really didn't want to start something with a little girl.

"Didn't anyone teach you not to suck so much?" smirked Toph, the genins started to laugh as Jiraiya's face started to get red. Toph laughed waspishly as she punched the ground and made a stone fist pop out. It collided straight into Jiraiya's gut, launching him into a fruit stand.

Team Jiraiya jumped back to see if Jiraiya was okay again, he was unconscious but nothing seemed to be broken. Toph was smirking and looking pretty proud of herself, it felt good to release some stress and kick some ass.

"I don't care if he's a pervert, no one knocks out my sensei!" cried Naruto, the rest of Team Jiraiya just shook their heads. Naruto made his favorite seal and created ten clones around him. A look of shock appeared on the young blind girl's face, she had sensed a sudden creation of ten people which boggled her mind.

"What the..." she didn't have time to finish as she felt four kicks into her ribs, sending her high into the air. "U Zu Ma Ki..." said the clones as the original slammed his heel into Toph's back launching her towards the ground, "Uzumaki Naruto Barrage!" finished Naruto.

"Don't you think that you over did it a little?" asked Shikamaru as he watch the young girl try to get up. Naruto grinned sheepishly.

"Damn… these guys are good…" struggled Toph as she coughed up some blood, no one got to beat her up and walk away with it…

Sasuke hated fan girls, even princesses with the power to shoot intense lightening bolts from their finger tips. In fact he had hope that she would be more professional than to have a crush on him, especially when the mission would probably end her life. However when Zuko, or at least Sasuke believe that was the chap's name, invited him to a special dinner with her majesty alone. He felt something telling him to just avoid it but then again he was awfully hungry.

He was walking down the great hall of the palace, wondering if this really was a good idea. If he let her down gentle… no this was an important mission. Her trust in him could be effected negatively by letting her down, which was something they couldn't afford or at least he could afford.

As time went on, he could see why Orochimaru had chosen him to spy on them instead of Kabuto even though Kabuto had more experience in spying, he didn't have the same good looks as Sasuke had. A sigh escaped his lips, for a while it had seemed that Orochimaru was just trying to get rid of him for the moment.

The giant doors that guarded the dining room came up faster than Sasuke thought, he have figured that he had more time to think and now was slightly nervous and was regretting this big time. It wasn't as if he didn't enjoy the princess's company, well he has never spent time with her and it wasn't as if she wasn't attractive.

He knocked on the door, not too sure of what to do at that moment. After a while, he heard a soft "Who is it?" the voice seemed shy in a way. "It's me." he said in his I'm not interested in you tone he used on Sakura back in the day. There was some soft giggling, Sasuke just sighed.

"Please come in." she said, he could almost taste the fan girl in her voice.

The giant banquet hall was darken quite a bit giving it a slightly more sensual feel to it than Sasuke was comfortable with. He notice that the giant tables were moved to the sides and a smaller, more intimate table was placed in the center of the room, covered in candles and rose petals in a tacky fashion to appear more romantic.

Sasuke sighed as he join the princess who looked overly dress for a simple dinner. Azula smiled seductively at him, she even topped it off with a wink which nearly made Sasuke run for it. One of the reasons why he left Konoha was to get away from situations like this.

"How are you this evening? Sasuke…" Azula grinned on the inside, no one could resist her charm. If she saw someone she wanted, which was rare since no one truly deserved her presence, she could have them at a moment's notice.

"I'm fine… is there something you needed?" Damn, he couldn't remember her name… didn't it start with the letter a or something like that. Sasuke was terrible with names, especially fan girl names.

"No… I just wanted to spend some quality time with you." She smiled again. It was hard to believe that he could last this long, most guys would be begging for her by now. Azula sighed to herself, it was time to turn up the seductiveness.

"Well… that's…" Again with that damn smile, he also notice the extra effort that she put in the word quality. Why couldn't she just get the picture, it wasn't like him to not know what to do. He might as well just go back to grunting all the answers like he used too, but of course if he didn't humor her there was a chance that this whole plan for him to gain immortal powers would fail. So Sasuke just swallowed his prided and smiled back with an awkward grim grin.

_'It's about time…'_ thought Azula as she realized that he had finally fallen for her, it was almost too easy.

"Umm… Princess I was thinking we should discuss our mission and how to deal with the Avatar at this moment…" Sasuke knew it was stupid and sounded weak but his only hope was to changed subjects in a vain attempt to get this runaway train back under his control.

"Oh… don't worry about that I have sent my brother and two of my personal guards to find him." Playing hard to get is he, he was just a little shy after all, of course that's it. Besides there really is no reason to worry since Ty Lee and Mai are after them and even if they fail Zuzu wouldn't.

Toph was getting tired, the odds were just against her. Four against one was not an easy fight no matter who you are. One of the strangers had a bizarre attack that worked kind of like Ty Lee's strikes and now her left arm wouldn't move at all. Another one could multiply and create a powerful explosion if he was next to her, something told her that if she let him hit her with that one then she wouldn't be up for a long time. And every now and again she would feel like she couldn't move, but of course she would just push through it like everything she did. The last one was a girl with super strength even compared to herself, her fist had collided with Toph's face and she was surprised to be blown back by such a powerful hit.

Sakura smiled, she had punched the girl in the face which had knocked her straight through a house. There was no way a girl, even a super power girl who could wield earth as a weapon, could survive a blow like that. Naruto, Shikamaru, and Hinata stared at Sakura, they were surprised that she had done that.

"Wo..wow Sak..kura-chan th..that was a…am..amazing" stuttered Hinata, she felt a ping of jealously at seeing Sakura use her devastating new abilities at work.

"Dang, Sakura-chan you didn't have to hit her that hard." whined Naruto, he too felt a ping of jealously at seeing Sakura and wondered if he had chosen the wrong sannin.

"Guys, I think that girl is blind…" He had notice how the young girl had taken the punch and seen her behavior in battle, there was not question about it, she couldn't see.

"Yeah right, Shikamaru. She just took us on by herself and nearly won." said Naruto in disbelief. He honestly hope that she wasn't, it wouldn't be good on his or any of their's consciences to beat up a little blind girl.

"Why would you say that Shikamaru, she put up a good fight." Sakura said in the same tone as Naruto. It had took all of them to take the girl down and even then they were nearly out of chakra. Of course it was probably because they held back so much, who wouldn't hold back a little when fighting at opponent like this.

"No..No… I th..think Shikamaru-kun is right, there's no chakra in her eyes." said Hinata, who was starting to suspect the same thing as Shikamaru. Of course it did sounded a little crazy to her as much as it did to the rest of them.

"I first noticed that she never focused on a target but always was accurate to such a degree that only someone who relied on a different sense instead of sight could do that. Adding the fact the way she reacted to our attacks and Naruto's clones, it was obvious that she couldn't see what was happening." They stared at Shikamaru for a moment, until they heard something moving in the rumble of Sakura's destruction.

"D..Damn you guys are good… ha ha ha… but you have meet your match." barely whispered Toph as she moved the pieces of the building without much effort. They could see a devilish smile on her face as she prepared for round two.

"Hey… guys I wouldn't feel right if we ganged up on her." said Naruto, it just didn't seem fair.

"Yeah, I think Naruto's right…" Sakura said, she already felt terrible about punching a blind girl in the face.

"We..We should attack one on one." stuttered Hinata, even then it seemed a little harsh to all of them.

"Your right Hinata, Naruto your up." said Shikamaru. Naruto just stared with his mouth open.

"WHAT! Why do I have to kick the blind girl's ass?" he honestly didn't want to be the one to beat a blind girl to the ground.

"Because, I'm the chunnin. That means I'm right, so go." smirked Shikamaru, Hinata and Sakura giggled. Naruto cursed and stomped his feet as he walked over to the little blind girl who was struggling to stand.

"Stop..Stop arguing about who gets first ups, I'll take all you on at the same…same time!" Toph whimpered loudly as she stomped the ground causing an earthquake, Naruto jumped into the air and created twenty clones, which then most of them turned into kunai.

"Are you ready, little lady!" Toph frowned, "For my newest attack!" screamed Naruto as each of his remaining clones, each holding a few clone kunais, tossed their kunai straight towards Toph.

She could hear them and feel the knives hit the ground, just barely missing her. "Ha Ha Ha, and you guys called me blind!" laughed Toph, but her laughed stopped as the kunai poofed and out of nowhere several kicks connected into her chest. She was launched off the ground with a grunt and then felt someone grab her ankles.

The Naruto clones had connect to make a huge clone chain and the top Naruto had a powerful hold on her ankles as they all started to spin. Toph started to feel slightly nauseated as he started to pick up speed.

"Naruto Uzumaki Backlash Whip!" screamed Naruto as he slammed Toph into a pottery stand. Everyone cringed as they saw several pops and a cloud of smoke appear.

"How was that? I don't think she will be getting up any time…" he was interrupted as a giant boulder twice the size of him came crashing down and killing the last few clones he had left. Naruto was smashed and sent flying through a building. Hinata gasped as she rushed to him, Sakura followed closely behind her.

"Man, it looks like I'm going to have to finish her off, this is so troublesome." sighed Shikamaru as he walked towards the crazy blind girl. Toph just smiled as she prepared to get into her fighting stance.

Next Chapter… Shadow vs Earth, Fire Nation Spies They Are Not!

Toph and Shikamaru battle it out as Zuko and the personal guards get closer to the village.


	4. Shadow vs Earth

Hearts of Heroes

by Awesomoisawesome

Awesomoisawesome does not own Naruto or Avatar the Last Airbender

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Chapter 4: Shadow vs. Earth, Fire Nation Spies They Are Not!

Shikamaru watched the blind girl for a moment in his thinking mode, as he prepared a battle strategy. She was the perfect opponent for him, even if he doesn't like the idea of fighting the blind. But her strange earth jutsus were causing problems for him.

"Are you going to start or wimp out, little baby!" To be honest with herself, she needed a breather for a second and was glad that he was just crouching in front of her. Their combined attacks had done some damage, especially that whip one had warped her senses for a bit and her left arm still couldn't move.

"Time to end this…" said Shikamaru as he stood, he had realized that she must be hearing his movements so if he was quiet enough she wouldn't be able to sense him and he could finish this one off quickly.

Shikamaru jumped back silently and with all the grace ninjas had, moved behind her. Toph just stood there, trying to hide her laughter, and listened to the vibrations the guy she was fighting create. He was almost as good as twinkle toes, almost.

_'This is too easy…'_ thought Shikamaru as he shot his shadow straight towards her back. Toph noticed for the first time that this guy's attack must be some sort of snake that slid on the ground. She could feel the slightest movements of a line racing towards her.

"Nice try but that's not going to work this time." she sidestepped it, Shikamaru was shocked that she could sense his shadow move but luck was on his side. She was just like Naruto, always jumping the gun.

His shadow circled back and connected, Toph was surprised that he could do that and now she was completely frozen. She struggled for a moment, not sure what to do. Before she could just stomp the ground and it would be over but now she couldn't move her feet at all.

Shikamaru sighed, his other attempts to capture her had failed because every time he had her, she would just stomp and spilt the ground. This would cut his shadow and his connection with her. To avoid this, he had added more attention to her legs than the rest of her body.

"Shadow Imitation Jutsu, successful." smirked Shikamaru, it was over and he didn't even have to hit a girl. Why was it always him who had to finish the girls.

Toph struggled and cursed, "Damn it, why… you little… Let me go you Fire Nation scum!" Being caught by the enemy wasn't what the group needed at the moment. Hopefully they wouldn't notice the fact that she was one of the Avatar's friends.

"Fire Nation? What are you talking about?" This didn't seem right…

"Yep Yep that's us, Fire Country all the way!" shouted Naruto as he laughed, the hit to the head had done some damage. Hinata and Sakura tried to cover his mouth, Shikamaru just shook his head.

"See! You guys are Fire Nation spies!" shouted Toph as she struggled more

"Come on, if we were spies do you think we would tell you that so bluntly. We wouldn't be that stupid." calmly said Shikamaru. Man, she was just like Naruto, this would be troublesome. Luckily for Toph though, he didn't notice the fact that she had gained the ability to move one finger.

"I don't know… but he seems like an idiot." They all agreed, even Naruto who was laughing again to himself. Toph was having second thoughts, mostly because of the fact that none of them used fire bending and even with their sharp knives they didn't have any other Fire Nation armor or weapons on them.

"I'm sure you can tell by now that there is something wrong with this fight" he didn't notice until it was too late, the girl had used her finger to send a rock at him, breaking his concentration for just a second. Toph launched herself back as she felt the binds on her lift.

"I'm not that easy, you Fire Nation scum. Now prepare to fight the world's greatest earthbender, Toph Bei Fong!" She cried out as she sent a giant wall of rock towards Shikamaru.

"This is so troublesome." he tossed a kunai with an explosive tag wrapped around it at the wall. It exploded as the wall and Shikamaru disappeared. Toph was knocked back, she figured it was some sort of fire bending that had caused the explosion. Shikamaru had rushed behind a building were he could watch the blind girl still.

Toph smiled, she loved it when the enemy played hide and seek. She tapped her foot and let the vibrations flow through the lands. It was not hard to notice the guy standing behind a building, since most of the villagers had ran once the battle had begun.

"Your not very good at hiding." smiled Toph as she slammed the ground with the only fist that she had left. Shikamaru just barely had time to jump as the ground around him collapsed. She notice that he had jump back farther than before, something that made her want to laugh. He was running away from the fight, she knew he was a wimp just like all fire nation soldiers.

Shikamaru had made an important discovery in the way she was sensing things, she wasn't using sound. He had been just at the right distance, far enough to see an opponent but way too far away to be heard, to notice that even if she had super hearing there was no way she could of heard his heartbeat or breathing. Also her attack had been perfectly accurate again, almost as if she knew were to attack.

He was starting to have a few theories about her senses, for one thing it must be some sort of radar effect that she must have. Other things were a factor too, such as her "earth bending" and the way she reacted to their attacks. However he didn't have long to figure this stuff out since the sun was about to set, which meant that he would be a his top potential soon and then his attack would be worthless. Nighttime would also be a great advantage to a blind person and he doubt any of them could beat her if they were in that scenario.

_'Troublesome, how is she… that's it!'_ thought Shikamaru as he picked up a few pebbles. Toph was still launching pillars of stone towards him, and he couldn't stand still or hide for a moment.

"Stop jumping around and just die!" she shouted as she unleashed thousands of cracks into the ground. Shikamaru add a little bit of his chakra to his legs and jumped a little higher than normal to land on the roof of a building. This seemed to confuse her for a second as he watched the puzzle look on her face.

It didn't last long though, as she started to toss boulders the size of carts towards the house he was on. _'One shot at this…'_ thought Shikamaru as he tossed the pebbles far away from him. His eyes focused straightly at her face.

Her reaction was slight and to the untrained eye they wouldn't even notice it, but she had felt the pebbles somehow and he was sure of it. This meant that she probably could feel anything that touched the ground, something that troubled him greatly as he abandoned the building and ended up in a tree.

Toph was getting annoyed, she liked a good chase but this was ridiculous. The boy wouldn't stand still and he was moving all over the place. She had a terrible feeling that he had discovered her secret sense, but that was impossible.

Shikamaru had started to throw trip wires every where, making sure that they were connected gentle and without much vibration at all. She seemed to not of notice, in fact it seemed like she was getting frustrated with him losing her focus. Something that would play out to his advantage greatly.

Toph was getting fed up, the entire battle area looked like someone had gone through there with a wrecking ball. Houses and buildings, carts and shops, where all destroyed and scattered all over the place. She unleashed another wave of rocks and again the boy side stepped them.

"Damn it, just stand still!" Shikamaru smirked, it was clear to him now that she didn't see the trip wires he had placed. Now it was time to get his plan into motion.

_'What would work on Naruto…'_ "My God, what's wrong with your aim. It's horrible, but I guess I should of expected it too be. You know since your… a girl." Toph's face contracted slightly, the boy had the audacity to make fun of a blind person about aim and calling her a girl was a first class ticket to painville.

"Why you son of a bi…" she couldn't finish as she felt the strange vibrating line travel towards her. She wasn't going to be caught again, that's for sure.

Toph dived to the side as it sped towards her, however she failed to notice the trip wires that Shikamaru had set up and was completely tangled in them now. The metal wiring cut her skin and they were unpleasantly cold to the touch.

"Checkmate." smirked Shikamaru, Toph looked stunned with the metal wires wrapped around her. She didn't see it coming, she had underestimated this guy and now was about to lose. Well she would be about to lose if she was any other earth bender.

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch…" Using her metal bending she snapped all the wire that was wrapped around her. Shikamaru looked stunned, he hadn't been expecting her to do that.

The young earth bender pulled herself up and smiled, "Time to start round two!" Shikamaru nearly collapsed, he had put most of his chakra into that last attack. It looked up to Hinata or Sakura to finish this opponent.

Toph was on her last leg, they had put up a fight and their little battle royal had lasted nearly half a day. Even if she had the willpower that made her unstoppable, her body just couldn't give her much more.

Nether of them expected a long pink tongue to wrap around the both of them. Jiraiya was smiling on top of one of the large frog's heads and he seemed perfectly okay for someone who had just been knocked out.

"I think we need to talk and get things straighten out." smiled Jiraiya as Naruto and the rest of team Jiraiya walked up to the giant frogs. Toph was too shocked to do anything but nod.

Zuko shook his head, he had been traveling for nearly a week and they were not any closer to finding Aang. Mai and Ty Lee had been getting on his nerves too, something that shocked him since Mai never got on his nerves. They had been arguing which way is the best way to go to find the Avatar.

"I think it's this way!" shouted Ty Lee as she pointed down a road that looked awfully sunny and pleasant with flowers blooming everywhere.

"I'm sure it's this way…" whined Mai as she pointed down a road that looked gloomy and everything seemed to be dying.

Zuko didn't want to go down ether path since they both seemed… well crappy. He sighed and notice a pair of old gentleman travelers walk pass them, they seemed deep in conversation. It wouldn't hurt to see if they knew something.

"Hello there, I'm sorry to bother you but… hmm… have you guys seen anything strange lately?" He knew it sounded stupid, but they might know something important.

"Hmm…Well I'm not sure you could call it strange but…" started one of the old men.

"We saw a giant bison in the sky!" shouted the other, he seemed a little bit off.

"I see…" The three just looked at the old men wondering if they were crazy, until Zuko remember something important about the Avatar's group. He grabbed the girls and whispered in their ears.

"Bison, giant bison, doesn't the Avatar ride on one of those?" Ty Lee looked out of it so she was no help and Mai shrugged her shoulders, she hadn't been playing that much attention to the group.

"Don't listen to him, he's just a crazy old man!" said the first old man.

"Your older than me…" said the second old man. They stared at each other for a long time. Zuko sighed again, it was turning in to a long day.

"By chance did you happen to see were it was going?" The first old man looked at him like he was crazy and the second one started to laugh.

"Of course, it's hard to miss it when it's a flying byson." giggled the second old man as he pointed towards the sunny and cheerful pass. Mai sighed as Ty Lee jumped for joy. Zuko just smiled, finally they were on the right trail and it was only a matter of time before he found him.

Next Chapter… Clarity

Team Jiraiya meet with the Avatar and learn of the terrible situation they are involved in.


End file.
